Childhood Dreams
by Soquilii
Summary: Based on One Small Step DISCLAIMER: Paramount owns the characters and the premise behind Star Trek.


_Chakotay: This piece of rock is billions of years older than Earth, from a time when the galaxy was still forming. Here._

 _Seven: Commander?_

 _Chakotay: Take it. You're holding a piece of history. Maybe even the beginnings of life itself._

 _Seven: Unlikely._

 _Chakotay: It's more likely than you think. This anomaly is as old as anything we've ever encountered. I could spend a lifetime studying the things it's collected._

 _Seven: And leave Voyager without a First Officer?_

 _Chakotay: They'd manage. Paleontology was always my first love. It was the reason I joined Starfleet._

 _Seven: Why didn't you pursue it?_

 _Chakotay: My sense of responsibility got in the way. First the Maquis, then Voyager - what I wanted to be always seemed to take a back seat. Do you remember what you wanted to be before you were assimilated?_

 _Seven: I was assimilated when I was a child._

 _Chakotay: I knew I wanted to be a paleontologist when I was six._

 _Seven: A … ballerina._

 _Chakotay: Maybe it's not too late._

 _Seven: It was a juvenile fantasy._

 _Chakotay: Those are the ones that stick with you._

-oOo-

The doors to Astrometrics whined open and Seven, immersed as always in work, turned to see who had entered. It was Chakotay, fully recovered from their recently shared away mission, looking thinner but otherwise in good health. He had been too badly injured to attend the funeral services for the late Lieutenant John Kelly, and she hadn't seen him since their return.

'How are you feeling, Commander?'

'Much better, thank you.' He glanced up at the giant screen. 'Still studying our comrade's logs, I see.'

'Yes. I find them…useful…which, ironically, was his last request.'

'Those who don't learn from the past are bound to repeat it.'

'Sir?'

'It's an old saying. One reason we study our past history is to learn from the mistakes made before, so that we don't make them again. It's the best way to progress. There are plenty of new mistakes to be made – no sense duplicating the old ones.'

She said nothing, but picked up the metallic fragment brought back from within the ellipse.

Chakotay read her silence correctly. 'Something on your mind?'

'On the Delta Flyer…while we were inside the graviton ellipse – you told me you knew you wanted to be a paleontologist when you were only six years of age.'

'Yes. I can remember it clearly. My father often took me exploring in the Central Americas on Earth. I enjoyed it except for the recitations about our tribe's ancient myths. To ease the tedium, I would often go off alone and dig up old bones and rocks. I would pretend to be working on a monumental discovery – perhaps even the physical evidence of my father's legends; somewhat like Christians searching for the ark in order to prove the ancient flood. That dream stayed with me until I was nearly grown.'

'Yet you put it aside in favor of Starfleet.'

'And later, the Maquis. I felt I was needed.'

'Why don't you pursue your studies upon our return to Earth?'

'If I'm not too old, I just might,' he smiled.

He picked up another fragment and studied it intently. 'How about you?'

'Commander?'

'Why don't you pursue _your_ childhood dream? Ballet, wasn't it? For most little girls, that's a popular ambition – except Naomi; I expect her to take over the Captain's job eventually. Seriously, why don't you?'

Seven cast an uncomfortable glance at him. 'I…wouldn't know how to go about it. In any case, I'm probably too old.'

'Well, while it's true that training for the ballet usually starts very young, you could still do it on an amateur basis – as a hobby - for your own enjoyment. The holodeck is programmed with all aspects of the arts – how do you think the Doctor learned opera?'

'It would serve no purpose for me to learn ballet.'

'It might help you reconnect with the child you were.'

'In every instance where I have been forced to contemplate my childhood, all I can remember is fear.'

'You have to go beyond the day you were assimilated, Seven. Go further back into your past, as far back as you can remember. Focus on the good things. Use that incredible iron will you've demonstrated to steer yourself away from what frightens you. You shouldn't fear visiting your childhood, Seven. It's a stepping stone to becoming human again.

'I will…consider it.'

'Then I'll leave you to your work.' He turned to go.

'Commander…'

'Yes?'

'Thank you…for teaching me the value of the past.'

He smiled at her and left Astrometrics.

-oOo-

On the barren, windswept plain of an M-Class planet some thirty years later, a man with flowing white hair bent tenderly over the exposed skeleton of some ancient creature. The wind howled around the force field erected around the site, for loose grains of sand would act as an abrasive to the delicate find.

With a small phaser, a few tools, brushes, and infinite patience, he chipped and brushed away eons of stone from the fossil. It was late in the day and he was losing the light; he had hoped to have the skull packed and ready by nightfall. He would have to complete it tomorrow.

Tiring, he rose and started down the gently sloping hill to the modular shelter set into the rock at the base. Once inside, the howling wind could not be heard. His ears rang with the silence. His back ached from the bending.

There were many such discomforts for an old man in his line of work, but he was nonetheless content. Tea awaited him in the replicator, and later he would have dinner and bed down early. Sunrise on this planet began at 1600 hours and he planned to be back at the site by then. He had attempted to work by artificial light the first few nights, but that took some of the fun out of it. He preferred waiting for the sun.

The monitor on his desk signaled an incoming message. He set his teacup down and logged into the comm system.

It was a letter from an old friend; an invitation, in fact:

 _Monsieur_ _Chakotay:_

 _Mlle. Hansen requests the pleasure of your company at her home, where she will perform for a private audience, a play about the struggles of a Norwegian immigrant family in early 20th Century San Francisco, as told through interpretive dance._

 _Address enclosed_

 _Stardate_ _585301.2_

 _2100 hours_

 _RSVP_

Chakotay smiled. He took a sip of his tea and tapped back a response: _Looking forward to it. Congratulations. RSVP confirmed._

The End


End file.
